Even though Microsoft remains completely tight-lipped on the first major refresh of its newly-released Windows 8, more evidence points to a so-called Windows Blue update that could arrive as soon as this summer.

A new software development engineer job listing confirms that Windows Blue is currently under development, but also reveals some new details about the upcoming software.

It appears that Windows Blue will be based on the existing user interface, but will feature major improvements to many aspects of the operating system.

“We’re looking for an excellent, experienced SDET to join the Core Experience team in Windows Sustained Engineering (WinSE). The Core Experience features are the centerpiece of the new Windows UI, representing most of what customers touch and see in the OS. Windows Blue promises to build and improve upon these aspects of the OS, enhancing ease of use and the overall user experience on devices and PCs worldwide,” the job ad spotted by ZDNet reads.

A recent rumor indicated that Microsoft is planning to push the Blue update beyond the Windows platform, so major changes are very likely to spread across the company’s product range, including Windows Phone, SkyDrive and Internet Explorer.

A Microsoft job reference to Windows Phone Blue suggests that the Redmond-based technology giant is working on what it’s being called “Excel MX,” a touch-optimized version of the spreadsheet app capable of running in Metro mode.

“As a development lead you will hire and manage a team of top-notch developers, be personally involved in the designing and coding features, and work closely with PM and Test counterparts across multiple orgs to help realize the vision of building high quality excel app for Windows Phone Blue,” the job ad states.

This isn’t the first time when Microsoft is believed to prepare a Metro-based version of its productivity suite, as the company is already offering both OneNote and Lync as stand-alone downloads for Windows 8 devices.

With so many rumors on the new Windows Blue swirling around, it’s most likely just a matter of time until Microsoft officially confirms the project, even though the company remains completely tight-lipped on the new product for the time being.

As far as sources familiar with the matter are concerned, Windows Blue is under development right now and could hit the market as a public beta sometime in June.

Previous reports have suggested that Windows Blue might see daylight in August, so this new rumor pretty much makes sense.

In addition, Chinese media has suggested that Blue could be offered as a free upgrade for Windows 8 users which, once again, doesn’t seem to be surprising at all, given the fact that it’s very likely to be shipped as a Windows upgrade and not as a stand-alone operating system.

Many have called Windows Blue “the first service pack” for Windows 8, even though Microsoft insiders had previously hinted that the company was looking to completely abandon the service pack cycle and focus on a yearly update schedule, just like rivals Apple.

The interesting thing is that the hardware industry sees Windows Blue as a breath of fresh air, as sales are yet to recover, despite the fact that Windows 8 is alive and kicking.

The same happened with Windows 8 too, as most manufacturers expected the new operating system to boost their sales, mostly because consumers around the world needed new hardware to run Microsoft’s latest operating system.
Unofficial reports, on the other hand, indicate that early Windows 8 uptake is rather disappointing, so Windows Blue could play an important role for Windows 8’s recovery as well.

update 3/24 -Windows Blue, the first major upgrade for Windows 8, just got leaked to the Internet, as the Redmond-based technology giant recently reached the first development stage of the project.

An early build supposed to be used by partners for testing purposes was released to the web, so users who want to give a try to Windows Blue can find the leaked ISO on most file sharing websites out there.

The leaked screenshots also provide lots of new details regarding Windows Blue, including several new features that are very likely to be introduced in this major Windows 8 refresh.

It appears that Blue will come with a reworked Start Screen, so no Start button will be introduced, even though lots of Windows 8 users have requested it.

As compared to Windows 8, Windows Blue will offer many more customization options for the Start Screen, along with smaller and larger tiles to better fit your screen.

What's more, Microsoft is apparently working on a new Snap View mode that would split the screen in half for the two launched apps, thus allowing users to run two different programs side by side in a 50-50 mode.

The Charms bar is also showing some improvements, including a play option for the Devices menu. In addition, the Share Charm is very likely to get a new feature that would allow users to quickly take a screenshot and share it with friends using the installed apps.

Aside from all these changes, Windows Blue could also bring major enhancements to the pre-installed Windows 8 apps, including SkyDrive. It might seem like Microsoft is working on some new features for the SkyDrive client that would allow users to automatically upload files and create backups using the cloud storage service.

Last but not least, Windows Blue will most likely come with Internet Explorer 11, as sources familiar with the matter have hinted that it could bring at least a beta version of the new browser version.

Don't forget that the leaked Windows Blue build is only an early version of the operating system, so it could be affected by plenty of bugs and performance issues.

- Windows 8.1 might be launched in AugustMicrosoft confirmed last week that Blue is just an internal codename for the first Windows 8 upgrade, so rumor has it that the company is pondering the Windows 8.1 designation for the next release.

While a screenshot rolled out yesterday revealed this name for the first time, insiders told ZDNet’s Mary Jo Foley that Microsoft is indeed very likely to call its future Windows contraption Windows 8.1.

What’s more, it appears that the Blue version of Windows RT, the operating system specifically aimed at tablets, might be released as Windows RT 8.1, even though this doesn’t make much sense.

As for the release date, some other sources familiar with the matter said earlier this year that Microsoft plans to debut Windows Blue in August, while the first public beta could see daylight sometime in June.

That people who got windows 8 will get shafted (just like people with Vista), is no brainer...

I had Vista and didn't get shafted, I used it for almost 3 years and had very few problems outside that initial dodgy launch window. I'm using W8 now and for $40, it's been perfectly fine, if not a little unnecessary.

i have used it since it hit technet and have had 0 problems with it, looking forward to blue

I never had issues with Vista(solid OS IMHO) and Win8 is fine ,I look forward to Metro improvements in Windows Blue which as we all know was expected,especially when you have a new redesigned OS like Win8,anyway something they can work on in Blue etc...

__________________ No.6: "I've Resigned. I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed, or numbered! My life is my own." .

Vista's failure was on 3rd party manufacturer's not Microsoft's. The end result of that was a change in the way 3rd parties participated/were required to participate in the win 7/8 development cycles.

On top of that, the other problem was people who didn't listen. MS said way before release not to bother putting it on machines more than something like 9-12 months old. People stuck it on old machines (much older than a year) and blamed MS.

I can admit to 2 issues. 1, my older (as in 3 year old) sound blaster card was obsoleted by Creative labs. The new one I got also had an issue because I got it prior to RTM and the genious's at creative labs didn't bother to start development of drivers until they had a gold copy in hand. Issue 2 was my older HP printer. Took HP 6 months after release to make a driver for the printer.

Neither issue was MS's. Other's with similar issues just blamed MS.

Something that always bugged me is MS never fought back on the issue, or so it seemed. They dictated the bully pulpit to the idiotic apple commercials and just ignored the issue like they were above it all.

Vista's failure was on 3rd party manufacturer's not Microsoft's. The end result of that was a change in the way 3rd parties participated/were required to participate in the win 7/8 development cycles.

On top of that, the other problem was people who didn't listen. MS said way before release not to bother putting it on machines more than something like 9-12 months old. People stuck it on old machines (much older than a year) and blamed MS.

I can admit to 2 issues. 1, my older (as in 3 year old) sound blaster card was obsoleted by Creative labs. The new one I got also had an issue because I got it prior to RTM and the genious's at creative labs didn't bother to start development of drivers until they had a gold copy in hand. Issue 2 was my older HP printer. Took HP 6 months after release to make a driver for the printer.

Neither issue was MS's. Other's with similar issues just blamed MS.

Something that always bugged me is MS never fought back on the issue, or so it seemed. They dictated the bully pulpit to the idiotic apple commercials and just ignored the issue like they were above it all.

Fair enough but the blame game dosent help the end user does it.

There is something to be said for the way apple does things, they wouldn't let crap like that happen in the first place due to the ecosystem they created. Why dosent microsoft make an MS brand line of laptops/desktops? They could decimate their current partners (who are failing anyway) by not confusing the balls out of everything (HP Pavilion g6-2242sa..... are you kidding me? what kind of name is that?! says nothing about the product) and not loading them with junkware. Never mind the 100% driver and hardware compatibility they would have.

There is something to be said for the way apple does things, they wouldn't let crap like that happen in the first place due to the ecosystem they created. Why dosent microsoft make an MS brand line of laptops/desktops? They could decimate their current partners (who are failing anyway) by not confusing the balls out of everything (HP Pavilion g6-2242sa..... are you kidding me? what kind of name is that?! says nothing about the product) and not loading them with junkware. Never mind the 100% driver and hardware compatibility they would have.

While I don't disagree, the other half of the problem was users ignoring what Microsoft told them WAY in advance.

Running the ship like apple and controlling every single little thing ad nauseum would work great. Problem is, they'd get hauled in front of the US Antitrust courts, EU courts, etc in a heartbeat. Yet the same divisions have no problem with Apple running their show that way.

Things get supremely complicated when you have to make the system work with millions of different add-ons. Apple issues edicts saying you WILL hit this, this, and this, can't exceed that, etc, etc, and vendors and users simply follow the company line and say 'yes sir,no sir, whatever you say sir'. Microsoft tries to do it and they're threatened with legal action, fines, lawsuits from vendors, users bashing them left and right, etc.

Can you imagine the rash of lawsuits, bashing, and vitriol that would have been unleashed if Microsoft pulled an Apple Maps fiasco? Apple took heat for 1-2 months, no one sued, they barely even apologized and everyone basically just let it go. They're still the butt of occasional jokes, but that's it.

Yet, because people don't listen to what they're told and vendors drop the ball, Microsoft still takes heat - SIX years later - over vista when nothing on Microsofts end was actually done badly.

It's not all that different from Windows 8 really. While I'd say you should have to spend any time to get it to work the way you need it on a desktop, I don't see anything actually wrong with it. It was annoying to have to fix associations so everything didn't default to metro apps (pics, videos, music, etc), but in reality it took maybe 10-15 minutes to square it away. Start button being gone is fine by me. The only real mistake I think they made there was not including video tutorial showing you how to do stuff in the new interface. You shouldn't have to stumble into things like the defacto hidden start button for example. Even Win95 had an intro video showing you the basics of the 'brand new' start menu.

There is something to be said for the way apple does things, they wouldn't let crap like that happen in the first place due to the ecosystem they created.

Actually Apple did something much worse - they introduced a new line of CPU (from PPC to Intel) that made ALL your legacy software obsolete. At first they added some sort of emulation to make them compatible but after I believe MAC OS 10.4 they dropped it. As for PPC era hardware, I don't know how well it was supported on the Intel line.

The trade off is that the switch to Intel allowed Mac hardware to dual boot Windows, which has nearly 2 decades of backward compatible hardware and software (not 100% of course) support, and for DOS support there is free 3rd party software (DOSBOX) for that.

And Mac also has some really stupid limitations sometimes. For example, the Power Mac line is supposed to be for the enthusiast who likes to customize his own hardware, but some Power Macs I've come across will for example specifically NOT allow the user to install a wireless network card and Apple will not sell the card to you if you wanted to do it anyway. You're supposed to take it to an Apple Authorized Service Center and get it done (and for an exorbitant price)